Posted on: Tuesday, June 3, 2003

Landslide area near Castle Junction to be stabilized

By Rod Ohira
Advertiser Staff Writer

The state yesterday hired a private contractor to temporarily stabilize an area near Castle Junction where two small landslides have occurred since May 20.

About 30 cubic yards of dirt and rock fell onto Honolulu-bound lanes of Kalaniana'ole Highway near the right turn to Kamehameha Highway at 4 a.m. yesterday, said Department of Transportation spokesman Scott Ishikawa. It took three hours to clear the debris. The cleanup slowed traffic, which was backed up to Castle Medical Center.

The contractor is tentatively scheduled to start work today and will be scaling back 2 feet to 2 1/2 feet in an area covering 30 feet to 40 feet along the hillside, Ishikawa said.

"It's a temporary measure, enough to stabilize," he said. "We want to get this done before any heavy rainfall creates a potential landslide."

A larger landslide occurred in the same area on May 20. About 40 cubic yards of dirt fell onto the right lane of Kalaniana'ole Highway, forcing a 2 1/2-hour road closure.

The state recently identified the Honolulu-bound lanes of Kalaniana'ole Highway at Castle Junction to be at the fifth-highest risk of rockfalls among 66 O'ahu highway sites. The state report noted that there is no rockfall catchment in the area, where traffic is heavy.

Ishikawa said the state's long-term options are to either scale back the dirt along the cliff side or to spray on a lime-type coating to harden the surface and prevent further erosion.